ASCO recently issued recommendations to help improve the quality of care for the more than 13 million cancer survivors living in the United States. ASCO’s vision for survivorship care comes at a critical time when more people than ever before are surviving cancer as a result of advancesin prevention, treatment, and follow-up care.

“Most patients still want to see their oncologists even after they have finished active treatment. Oncologists are well positioned to lead and develop a strategy for coordinating follow-up care with primary care providers,” said 2012-2013 ASCO President Sandra M. Swain, MD, FACP. “We can’t let these patients, who are living examples of the progress we have achieved in cancer, fall through the cracks. ASCO’s statement provides a roadmap for closing the gap in survivor care.”

ASCO’s survivorship recommendations:

• Promote patient-centered coordinated care through the use of shared-care models
• Increase adoption of quality improvement programs, such as QOPI®, which help physicians monitor and improve care for all survivors
• Expand research on long-term and late effects to develop the evidence base
• Strengthen the education of health care providers on survivorship care
• Educate and empower cancer survivors and their families to advocate for their unique needs

ASCO is also calling upon policymakers to ensure that the needs of cancer survivors remain a priority as provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are implemented. In addition, ASCO believes the Comprehensive Cancer Care Improvement Act has the capacity to address reimbursement issues related to survivor care by creating a Medicare reimbursement structure for cancer care planning and the development of coordinated cancer care plans.